St. Cloud Man Died After Being Tased: BCA

ST. CLOUD, MN — The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has identified the people involved in an arrest in St. Cloud on Wednesday during which a man became unresponsive and later died.

David John Beckes, 41, of St. Cloud, died after being tased, authorities said. Beckes’ cause and manner of death are pending toxicology testing and microscopic examination results.

• Officer Brandon Leuthardt has been with the St. Cloud Police Department for four years. Leuthardt deployed his Taser.
• Officer Jessica Schlieman has been with the department for 24 years. Schlieman deployed her Taser.
• Officer Zachary Scholl has been with the department for one year.

Officers Schlieman and Scholl sustained minor injuries during the arrest that did not require medical treatment. All three officers are on standard administrative leave.

Officers arrived at Beckes’ apartment on March 4 at 3:16 p.m. in response to 911 call of a reported assault-in-progress. A woman said she was being assaulted and choked by Beckes. The woman also reported that prior to the attack, Beckes was unresponsive and then appeared to have had a seizure, according to a news release.

When officers did not receive a response at the door, they forced entry into the home. Officers encountered Beckes in a bedroom. Beckes did not comply with officer commands and resisted arrest, police said. Two of the officers deployed their Tasers.

Beckes became unresponsive, police said. Officers began medical attention and he was taken by Mayo Ambulance to the St. Cloud Hospital where he later died.

The woman who had called 911 sustained minor injuries from the assault, police said.

The BCA will determine whether Taser cameras or squad dash cameras captured any audio or video of the incident. The BCA investigation into the incident is active and ongoing.